The Fort Sheridan, Illinois, Army Reserve Center project design was developed by Louisville District in-house designers. The team was involved throughout the entire process from facilitating the initial design charette with the 88th Reserve Support Command, Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, determining the layout of functional spaces and providing support for construction. The two-story project includes a Training Center, the Organizational Maintenance Shop (OMS), an Unheated Storage Building, and a Military Equipment Parking area.
During weekend drills, service members will be able to utilize new offices, a library, fitness room and training classrooms. The team helped the Reserve to determine functional spaces best suited for the Reserve’s mission. On the second floor, a large space with plenty of natural lighting will be used for offices and cubicles, or open team meeting areas for Reservists. The furniture package was also fully developed by district interior designers to create a complete and comprehensive interior design, coordinating the furniture features and finishes with the building’s interior finishes.
The center will not only house more than 70 full-time employees, but it will support more than 215 88th Army Reserve Command personnel during training for one weekend a month and two weeks during the year. The project demolished four old buildings from the original Fort Sheridan Army post. These buildings had been remodeled several times over the years but were not adequate to accommodate training missions for national defense.
This was one of the first Louisville District projects to utilize the true energy charette process where all stakeholders were involved in what energy saving measures would be used, how LEED Silver Certification would be achieved, and how the energy saving measures and LEED credits would determine the site and building design features, according to Melissa Meyers, Louisville District architectural section chief.
Calvin Schmid, Louisville District contracting officer representative, pointed out that the construction methodology used for the project was Insulated Concrete Forms, which assemble like Legos to create a solid concrete core wall with insulation on both sides—the advantage being that the walls provide a tight and well-insulated building envelope.
Energy efficient plumbing, heating, ventilation, air conditioning and electrical systems will not only be LEED certified but will also undergo testing to assure all systems work according to the design intent. Additional energy saving features include the solar hot water system in the training building and transpired solar wall panels using solar energy to heat the OMS spaces.
The project will be completed during calendar year 2016.